Friday, December 26, 2014

Justin Lin set to direct Star Trek 3

As many of you already know, JJ Abrams is has been too busy with Star Wars and it was inevitable that he would leave the similarly humongous universe of the Star Trek movies to another director. For a while, producer/writer Roberto Orci (which had Abrams' blessing) was set to take over the helm of Star Trek 3. But there was a large backlash coming from fans who were against that idea (especially that Orci was partially the reason why the last Star Trek movie was bad). One of the big (and a really good choice, IMO) names for the directing job was Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes). But now, Paramount has turned to Fast and Furious director Justin Lin to helm Star Trek 3 which is set for release July 8, 2016. [hit the jump to continue]Lin first came to prominence after his film "Better Luck Tomorrow" became an official selection of the 2002 Toronto International Film Festival, and was nominated for a Grand Jury Prize at 2002 Sundance and the John Cassavetes Award at the 2004 Independent Spirit Awards. He later came to Hollywood fame when he directed the third Fast and the Furious movies, and since then, he became the steward of the Fast and Furious franchise up till the sixth one (the seventh will be directed by James Wan).

I, personally, am not quite thrilled with the idea of Lin directing Star Trek because Lin seems to work best in action films. The Star Trek movies are more centered on the more cerebral aspects of science fiction. That is what sets Star Trek and Star Wars apart. Trek is more about the story and very less on the spectacle. But then again, Lin might surprise us the way he surprised the world with his Sundance entry.

t’s a bit surprising that Paramount would go with a July opening after both Star Trek and Star Trek Into Darkness performed well in May, but when you look at the competition, it’s pretty clear that the studio just gave the film the best possible shot at hitting it big. Captain America: Civil War and X-Men: Apocalypse will both likely be well on their way out as July rolls around and then Star Trek 3 will have a month until Suicide Squad comes out. Of course there are some other potential blockbusters in the mix, but keeping clear of the superhero competition definitely puts a new release on the right track.